Just keep rockin
by shadowkat18
Summary: Serena is forced by her friends to stalk a famous singer. She gets to meet him and tell him how much she hates people like him. What she doesnt know is that he liked it!
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Shrine**

It was a beautiful afternoon in Tokyos suburbs. Serena was with her friends in Rayes shrine, watching at MTV, for the launching of the new video of an artist that Serena, actually, wasn't really interested in. She had come with the other girls just because she hated to be stuck in her house all alone, so she hadnt much of an option. While she was sitting in the back, while Mina, Lita, Raye and even Amy were fighting for the front seats nearer the TV. Finally, she heard them screaming, which means that the video has just begun.

-"I cant believe that Darien Green is such a hottie!!"- said Mina, while the other girls nodded in agreement. Meanwhile, Serena was looking at a magazine, without paying too much attention.

-"So Sere, what do you think bout him?"-Asked Lita.

-"I dont think you guys wanna know my opinion"- she said

-"Why not?"- Amy asked.

-"Because youll be surprised in a bad way"-Serena answered.

-"Oh, Cmon! I dont think is that bad!"-Responded Raye.

-"Well, if you guys wanna know, here it goes. I think that a guy that thinks that the whole world lies on his feet must be a jerk, a git and an asshole!"-She answered-"besides, look at the guy, please!! I bet he has some kind of Attention-seeking disorder!!"

When she finished talking, there were four open mouths. The girls couldnt believe that she, Serena, the biggest dreamer of them all, thought in that way!

But an announcement caught their attention. The video has ended and they couldnt believe what they were listening. The host of the show in MTV was repeating the ad:

-"As I've just said, hold on girls, the famous rock musician, Darien Green, is doing a Tour to Japan, starting in Tokyo. In an interview, Mr., Green told our reporter that hell stay in the city two weeks before the show, because he had always wanted to know the city, so remember girls! Get your tickets, because I bet theyll run out very fast!"

The sudden silence was broken by the delight screams of the four girls. When the commotion finally died, Serena could only hear part of the babbling:

-"I cant believe it! Weve got to get those tickets really soon!! Maybe we should go right now, to claim the first tickets in town!"

-"OK, thats it!!"

Eight eyes turned around to see a fuming Serena. She continued:

-"Are you being serious?! You're gonna run to spend your money on tickets to see this guy? You could use this money on something better!!"

-"Yeah, like what?"- They all four yelled.

-"I dont know, charity, maybe!"

-"Oh, Sere, Cmon!! It will be fun. Maybe you should come with us. Even maybe youll change your mind! We are friends, for Gods sake! It will be fun! I promise!"- Said Mina, putting some puppy-dogs eyes.

That was more that what Serena could take. She was being rude to her friends and that wasnt OK. Who knows, maybe she could meet a cute guy during the concert and that couldnt be that bad. Finally, she gave up.

-"OK, I will go with you to the concert, but dont expect that I like the gits music!

-"Cool!! And maybe we could go to the hotel hes staying, to try to get an autograph!! I can watch it on the Internet!"- Said Amy

-"Nice one Ames"- cheered the girls, while Amy was typing on her computer. Finally, two hours later, she came with a hint, while the rest of the girls had already bought their tickets and came back to the shrine.

-"Guys, Ive got some really good news!! Apparently, the presenter on MTV was a little uninformed. Darien Green is already here in Tokyo, he came in yesterday and hes staying in the Marriott Hotel, down Main Street. I also got his schedule and right now, hes in there. If we run, maybe we can get an autograph today!!"

And without hearing Serena's complains, the rest of the girls caught her and dragged her out of the shrine, to run to the hotel.


	2. Hotel

**Chapter 2: Hotel**

Finally, the girls were in the hotel. Serena couldnt complain, it was really fancy and cool!! The girls couldnt stop asking the receptionist about Darien Green.

-"Could you tell us in which room hes staying? Its really important to find out!"- Asked Mina, but the receptionist only shook her head, responding that she wasnt allowed to give such important information to some schoolgirls. Finally the girls agreed that they should split in order to find the right floor. When they find out where he was, they will call the others. Serena just complained the whole planning, saying that it was a lot of trouble just to find some jerk. With killer looks, the others ignored her and Mina dragged her to the fifth floor.

In a penthouse in the fifth floor, a tall, handsome guy was looking out the window. How beautiful Tokyo was! The last time he has been there, his career was in a low. He couldnt find a good manager and it looked like everyone has turned their backs to him. But, here, in this very town, he had found Malachite, a manager that was in a low too. All the singers he had represented had failed and his reputation was sinking like a stone. But when Malachite found Darien, everything has changed. An old friend of Malachite owed him a favor, and that favor had changed their situation. Now, five years later, all the people that had let him down were trying to get some credit for nothing. To be honest, Darien was sick of all the people following him, bowing to him, but in their minds having plans of their own. He had just broke up with Hina. For the first time in five years, a girl seemed to like him for what he was, not for what he had or owned. But then, one day after he proposed her to marry him, he heard her talking on the phone. She was talking to a guy that was sure. There were only a few words that he remembered of her: "sure, the sucker has bitted the bait. He proposed marriage to me, but soon after we get married, I will ask for a good prenuptial agreement and then I will ask the divorce. Dont worry babe, well be rich in a few weeks". After that, there was no need to describe the situation. He had ended his relationship with her, but he didnt tell her that he knew the truth. He hadnt had the guts. He promised himself that the next time he fall in love, he would be more cautious, but deep inside him, he wondered if there was a chance for him.

He turned around when he heard that somebody entered his room. It was Malachite, who looked at his friend. Finally he spoke:

-"Are you ready for the photo shoot? Were leaving in two hours, so I think you should be getting ready by now."

-"Sure, just leave me alone to get changed and order that I dont want to be disturbed until we have to leave please."-He answered, thanking in his insides that his manager was his best friend, and the only person he trusted right now.

-"Sure Darien, ill tell everyone"-Said Malachite, closing the door as he left.

Serena and Mina walked through a long hallway in the fifth floor of the hotel. Mina had tried to open every door, and they have run to a lot of mad guests that didnt like that two complete strangers were sneaking around in their rooms. But what they didnt know was that one of the guests had called security, and right now, two security guards were looking for them.

When they turned around the corner, they were discovered. Mina was trying to open another door, while Serena was trying to convince her not to do it. The guards saw them and one of them called them to stop and turn around slowly. Mina was terrified and she just started running, while she was dragging Serena behind her. When they came to a link of two hallways, Mina said:

-"Lets split! ill go this way, while you go the other way. Meet me in the lobby!!"- And right after that, Mina started to run in a opposite direction.

Serena found herself running, while she tried desperately not to get caught. _Stupid jerk, if I had't be so stupid I would't be in such trouble._ She thought. Meanwhile, she saw a door and quickly opened it and slid inside a dark room. There was only one light on and she heard a hard voice coming from the inside of that room:

-"Mally, I told you that I didnt wanted to be disturbed until we have to go to the photo shoot"- While a head came off the room. Serena could only see some guy with dark blue eyes staring at her, surprised that she wasnt Mally. Finally, he though that she must be a fan, so he told her:

-"You must be a really good fan if you managed to get in here. So, what do you want? An autograph? A photo? Hurry, I dont have much time to be dealing with you."

Serena couldnt believe what she was hearing. Who the hell do this guy though he was to treat her like that? She could feel the anger rising through her veins, so finally, she snapped:

-"Who the hell do you think you are to treat me like that? You think that only because you are famous you can treat people like garbage! But no mister, you cant treat me like that, because I think you are a big idiot! Yeah, believe it or not, no every girl in Tokyo is loosing her marbles for you! My friends dragged me here and I dont even wanted to be here in the first place. And second, I think you are a attention-seeking jerk!"

Darien couldn't believe what he was hearing. She wasnt afraid to tell him what she thought about him. God, she must be really brave to do that. After years of hearing stupid lies, here she was, someone who didnt mind to tell him the truth in front of him. And, deep inside, even though he didnt like to be treated like shit, he liked that.

Serena was uncomfortable with the long silence. She wished she hadnt told that, but to be honest, the guy was looking for it. Maybe he wasnt used to hear someone telling him the bare truth, but whats done its done.

Malachite opened the door of the suite, and he couldnt believe what he was seeing. Darien was standing in the entrance of the bathroom, while a blond girl was giving him a hard look. Was she a girl from a party? Dariens last mistake? Finally, he broke the uncomfortable silence:

-"Um, Darien, who is she?"

-"Shes a little sneak that entered in the room without warning"- He answered simply.

-"Oh God, would you like me to call security, theyll get rid of her in a second"

-"No"-He said-"It was a mistake of mine. She surely got inside the wrong room."

Serena couldnt believe her ears. The guy was saving her, even though she has been so rude to him? But, forget it, she wouldnt fall so easily for this jerk. Maybe he was trying to get her sympathy, but she wasnt such an easy girl! She turned around to get out the room, but he called her:

-"Where do you think you are going? I saved your ass, and you dont even tell me your name?"

-"And why do you want my name in the first place? To brag about me with your buddies?"

-"No, I just want to know the name of the girl who had the guts to tell me that Im a jerk right in front of my face."

-"Right, my name is Serena Tsukino, and honestly, I dont care that your name is Darien Green!"

Serena walked out the room without turning back. Malachite watched her quietly, and when she finally got out the room, he turned to confront Darien. But instead of the face of anger he was thinking he might have, he was smiling! He couldnt believe that after such a young girl treated him like garbage, right after he saved her butt, he was smiling.

Finally, he managed to ask him:

-"Man, why are you smiling like an idiot?"

-"I like her."

-"What?! I mean shes cute and even fine, but she thinks you are an idiot, and right now I'm thinking the same thing about you. Any girl that talks to me like that wouldnt receive my sympathy right away!"

-"Its not that. Shes the first person in five years that doesnt bow to me, that doesnt mind of telling me the things the way they are. Trust me, in my life thats something that its no easy to find. I want you to find everything about this girl. Where she lives, what school does she go. Everything."

-"Sure man, but I think its not gonna be easy to get her to like you. I think she was pretty clear about it."


	3. Lobby

**Chapter 3: Lobby**

Mina, Lita. Raye and Amy couldnt stop looking at the elevator doors. A few minutes before, Mina had come to meet them… without Serena. She was hysterical, crying and saying something that it was her fault. When the girls managed to get her calmed down, they found out the whole story of the security guards. She kept repeating that it was her fault, because Serena didnt wanted to be there in the first place. Right now, 15 minutes later, all of them were worried. Serena hadn't showed up yet. Thinking the worst, they couldn't stop looking at the elevators. Finally, the doors opened, and a very angry Serena appeared. She was so mad, that she didn't realized that all the girls were around them and bombarding her with questions:

-"What kept you so long? We thought that the guards had you and Amy was about to call your parents!"

When all the questioning ended, Serena just said one phrase:

-"I met Darien Green."

-"WHAT?! What do you mean? How is he? Is he cute? Is he nice? Spit out right now!"

Serena couldn't believe them. One moment they were worried about her and the next minute, they only cared about that jerk. Anger started to rise in her veins, and finally, she snapped:

-"I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT YOU GUYS ONLY CARE ABOUT THAT! I WAS IN TROUBLE, I ALMOST GOT ARRESTED AND THE ONLY THING YOU GUYS CARE ABOUT IS THAT JERK?!"

All the girls shut up. They didn't like the way Serena yelled at them, but they knew she was right. Finally, Mina broke up the uncomfortable silence:

-"Look Serena, you are right and we are sorry. We should probably go to the shrine."

Serena was calmed now. She knew that her friends cared about her, and silently, she accepted their apologies. Finally, she told them all about her encounter with Darien Green, and the rest of the girls couldn't believe it. Finally, the day was over and Serena went back to her house, right after she picked her stuff at Raye's shrine.

The next day Serena was stuck once more at Ms. Haruna's class. She couldn't believe how boring it was! Obviously, Ms Haruna was always bothering Serena, because she started to fantasize while she was looking outside the window, and her teacher always asked her questions of the things she wasn't listening to. But today Serena didn't cared. She still was too mad about the other day. There was only one picture in her mind, the face of Darien Green. To be honest the guy wasn't so ugly at all. You could even tell he was cute. But the fact that a famous musician asks for your name right after you treat him like a piece of garbage its disturbing. Maybe he just wanted to sue her, but nobody can be sued just because you insult somebody. But what the hell! The guy was looking for it!

Knock, Knock. Ms. Haruna looked at the door, angry that somebody interrupted her important class, and called the knocker in. It was a delivery guy and carried a little package in his hand. Serena looked at him and turned back to the window. Five seconds later she heard her teacher calling her name:

-"Serena Tsukino?"

-"it's me.- she said- what's up?"

-"this gentleman has a delivery for you, please take it so the rest of us can continue with our lesson, you are interrupting us."

Serena walked to the door and received her package. Silently she walked back to her seat, while Amy looked t at her with her inquisitive blue eyes. While Ms. Haruna continued her lesson, Serena opened the package. It contained a little envelope inside and a box. She opened the envelope first and a letter jumped out the envelope. It was a note and while the rest of the class was paying attention to their teacher, Serena struggled to keep her jaw in place:

"Sorry if I made a bad impression to you the last day. I was really impressed by your statements the other day, so I was thinking that we should reunite so you can explain you're the reason of that point of view of me. Maybe after the concert? I saw you leaving with some girls, that I presume to be your friends, so if you don't trust me good enough, I sent backstage pass to them too. See ya in the concert.

Darien Green,

"THE ATTENTION-SEEKING JERK"


	4. Concert

**Chapter 4: Concert**

Darien was staring out the windows of the hotel. He couldnt get out his mind the lovely figure of miss Serena Tsukino calling him a jerk. She looked so furious, so self-confident! He couldnt wait until she met him backstage in the concert! Maybe then he could get a chance of showing her that he wasnt such an idiot. Was this his chance of finding somebody that wouldnt lie to him, somebody that could see the real him, not only the famous singer that make millions in every concert.

-"Shes driving you crazy, isnt she?"-asked Malachite, amused to see a smile on his friends lips.

-"Is it so obvious? I dont know Mally, but there was something about her that drives me crazy, considering that I just met her for a minute, but that time means a lot for me. I gave me new hope on human beings"

-"Well, you should hurry to get dressed. The concert begins in two hours, and we need to do the sound check. Dont worry, shell be there. Her friends will drag her there."

Meanwhile, in Minas place, all the girl were getting dressed for the concert, except Serena, who was not so willing to go. After a lot of arguments by her friends and another ration of Minas puppy eyes, she began to get dressed. She wore a pink top and a pair of black jeans, with tall black leather boots. Finally, after an hour of driving to the stadium, the line was of the length of three blocks. The girls couldnt believe it! It will take them forever to get inside! For their surprise, the manager of Darien, Malachite, has given instructions to the staff to find them and place them in the front seats. While they were waiting, Malachite appeared next to them, and greeted them:

-"Hi, Im Malachite, Darien's manager. He asked me to give this to you, Serena. We met in his penthouse, remember?"

-"Yeah, I remember you. I hope you are nicer than that geek. No offense, but couldnt you have found someone else to represent? Maybe a girl or something?"

-"Maybe Darien gave you a bad first impression, but usually hes very nice too. You just need to get to know him a little better. That's why he sent you the backstage passes, in the first place."

Malachite chuckled to himself. Darien was going to have a hard time with this girl. But, instead of seeing Serena, Malachite was impressed with her friend, Mina. The girl hadnt have said anything by now, but he could only see the beauty of her eyes. She seemed very amused with all the things her friend was saying.

-"Ser, why dont you just leave the poor Malachite alone? Its not his fault that his boss is such a famous musician."- she replied.

-"Im gonna have to agree with you Mina- Malachite said- Why dont you just wait until you the concert is over to give my dear boss a piece of your mind?"

-"OK!"- Serena answered-"But just after the concert!"

-"Good-answered Malachite-because he made reservations in a restaurant for you to go with him.

Serena struggled to keep her jaw in place. It was unbelievable!! Not only the jerk was driving her friends out of their minds, but also the bastard had the guts to take her out to dinner!!

The hours went by, while Serena was trying to understand why the hell she allowed her friends to drag her to that situation. Many time she attempted to escape, but all the girls were there to stop her. Finally, after 3 hours of hearing the jerk sing, the concert was over.

"At least the girls are with me, so I dont have to deal with the jerk by myself"- Serena thought while she and the rest of the girls were walking to get backstage. Finally, they got there.

-"Darien? Here are the girls you invited to the concert."- said Malachite, who, by the way, hasnt left Mina's side the entire night.

"OK, Mally , thanks. So, Serena, I saw that you were pretty bored during the concert"

"Yeah, actually, I dont enjoy praising an idiot who thinks that he is a good singer"- she said, while she looked at him in a bad mode.

"Well I hope that we can discuss your attitude towards me during dinner. I guess that Malachite gave you my message."

"Unfortunately yes I got your message. Hey girls, where are you going?"- said Serena while she saw all the girls putting on their coats and leaving out the door.

"Its late and besides the one who got the dinner invitation was you, not us."- said Rei, with a smile on her face.

"So, we have to go, and don't forget to give us all the details tomorrow!"- Said Mina.

"But, wait I thought…"

"Bye!!"


	5. Restaurant

Chapter 5: Restaurant.

Serena looked at Darien through the table in the restaurant. The guy was looking at the wine list of the house. He was kinda cute when he was concentrated… _Waaaaait just a sec! Serena, you hate the guy, remember?_ She thought. Yes, but the fact that she hated him didnt stopped her from admiring a guys face! She returned her attention to the menu in her hand. The list of food was a little too exotic for somebody who is used to eat fast food and her mothers home made meals. Finally she decided to choose a weird named pasta and he ordered a thing too weird to be described. The moment of truth was there. She avoided talking to him in the ride to the restaurant by pretending to be asleep, but in here she couldnt remain silent and she couldnt do an act in the middle of the crowded place.

Darien knew that the girl was stressed by the fact that she couldnt remain silent anymore. He knew that she was faking in the ride from the concert to the restaurant. She wasnt asleep, he saw her breathe too fast to be asleep. But right here she didnt have a way out, so he was going to get to meet her, wherever she liked it or not.

"So, how old are you?" He asked (Hey, the guy had to start to say something! Dont be mad if its lame!)

"Im seventeen, going on eighteen. And you?"

"Im twenty-one. When is your birthday?"

"In two weeks. Finally im gonna be an adult, at least legally!"

"So I guess it makes it legal then"

"What?!"

"The wine, I mean, I ordered wine and I was worried that you were too young to drink."

"Oh, right. I thought you were talking about something else… you know."

"What, that if im gonna take my chances with a school girl. Sorry to disappoint ya, but Im not that kinda jerk."

"No! I mean… nevermind."

He smiled, looking how beautiful she looked when she blushed. Truth to be told, he was enjoying her company, no matter if she was silent or talking. It seemed that things were getting better for him. He promised to himself that he would get her to like him.

"Could you take me home, please?"

The sound of her voice got him out of his thoughts. It took him sometime to process what she had just said. Why was she wanting to leave?

"Am I such a bad host?"

"No, its just that is kinda late and my parents are gonna be worried if I get home late. Besides it was your idea to invite me to dinner, I never asked for it!"

"So now you are gonna say that Im a jerk for inviting you to dinner?"

"Well, maybe you should just think about other peoples preferences before force them to make company to somebody so annoying like you! What, dont you have a one-night stand to find tonight?!"

"So thats what I am to you, right? Like you said, an attention-seeking jerk, who only wants to get laid with one different chick every night?"

"Yeah, thats exactly what I meant! You are just a self-centred person! You think that the world turns around you, when you dont realize that there are other human beings in the world!"

"This may sound weird to you, but I agree with what you just said. Maybe this date was a terrible mistake! Maybe I should have let the security guards in the hotel take care of you! Maybe my biggest mistake was to think that you would be different from all the girls Ive met! Im such a fool to think that this time would be different! So, good night, and good-bye!"

Darien got up, took his jacket, threw the money on the table and left the place.

Serena just sat there, thinking about what he just said. _What did he mean by "this time?"_ she was feeling guilty, actually. The guy wasnt so self-centred after all. He had helped her in the hotel, right after she yelled at him for no reason. He invited her to dinner and she just insulted him and thought the worst of him. _Maybe I should apologize to him._ She got up, took her coat and exit the restaurant. When she looked around, all she saw was Malachite standing next to a cab.

"So, what happened in there?" He asked.

She looked to the floor, embarrassed.

"You dont have to feel ashamed. He shouldnt have yelled at you like that."

"I dont blame him."

"Why do you say that?"

"I treated him like crap. Im feeling guilty about it."

"Dont worry. Im sure you had a reason. He already left, but asked me to make sure you got to you home safely."

"Oh, thanks. Do you know his cell number? I wish to talk to him, you know, to apologize."

"I cant. I cant give his private number to every girl he goes out with. Otherwise the phone would never stop ringing."

"its ok. Please tell him that im sorry for what I said."

"Ok. Good night"

"Good night."


	6. Sing and confess

Chapter 7: Sing and confess.

Darien walked into the penthouse, very upset, but at the same time feeling very guilty. He grabbed his guitar and sat on the balcony, trying to focus everything he felt in a song. He began to play a tune, adding the words in the way.

_It's excruciating_

_I know you need to know where we stand_

_Is there harm in waiting?_

_Is this my only chance to take your hand?_

_I'm torn in two_

_By what I should_

_Or should not do_

_Torn, torn in two_

_Will you wait for me?_

_If I run from you?_

Serena told the taxi driver to leave her at the hotel. It was so late, that the reception guy was nearly falling asleep, so she pretended to be a guest and head straight to the elevators. She pressed the button for the penthouse floor and waited while it began to move. She had only one idea in her mind: apologizing. Malachite had told her to go home, but she knew that if she didnt do something fast, she wouldnt get a decent night of sleep, feeling guilty of all she had done. The elevator doors opened and she began to walk towards the door. When she was about to knock, she heard music coming from the inside and Dariens voice singing:

_I really must confess_

_It feels like there's a war in me._

_I'm one of those who ever last_

_But is this really where I need to be?_

_I'm torn in two_

_By what I should_

_Or should not do_

_Torn, torn in two_

_Will you wait for me?_

_If I run from you?_

She hadnt noticed that the guy was such a good singer. _Well, maybe you could have noticed in the concert if you werent sulking against the poor guy._ She kept on listening, but since he was on the other side of the room, she opened the door a little to hear better.

_Over this, I'm loosing rest._

_I can barely turn away_

_If I try a second guess_

_Oh, I'll give it all away_

_Oh,_ _I'm torn_

_Torn, torn in two_

_Will you wait for me?_

_Should I run from you?_

_I'm torn_

The music died, and tears were running down Serenas eyes. The guy had a heart after all, and she was the responsible of those words.

"Im sorry."

She looked up, and saw him standing in front of her. She cleaned the tears away and shook her head.

"No, I am the one who should be apologizing. You were so nice to me, but I treated you like crap from the beginning."

"But I made you cry. That makes me a worse person."

"No it doesnt! I was crying because your song made me realize what kind of jerk I was being to you. Believe me, Im not normally such a bad girl."

"Yeah, but I didnt give you much of a choice."

"What do you mean?"

"I pulled out conclusions fast and treated you like you were a stalking fan."

"Let me tell ya, I looked like one."

"Yeah, but you didnt wanted to do so. Your friends forced you."

"Yeah, some of them have special techniques to make me, you know, puppy dog-eyes and stuff."

"You are lucky to have good friends."

"You have Malachite, dont cha?"

"Yeah, sometime I feel he is the only one I can trust."

"You know what you need?"

"What"

"You need to have some fun. Get out and stuff. It seems to me that you are stuck in here all day long. Do you ever do something more than just giving a show and come back home?"

"No, not really. That is pretty much all the fun I have had recently. I guess tomorrow will be the same. What a way to spend my birthday"

" Oh, tomorrow is your birthday? Ok, I know what your present is gonna be! I am gonna teach you the best way to have fun! I will be here tomorrow at noon, so dont try to get away this time!"

"What are we gonna do?"

"I wont tell ya! Otherwise, youll find a way to spoil the fun!"

"Great, now I am a fun-spoiler."

"No, I was just saying that is better if you dont know where I am taking you. So I will be here tomorrow at 12 sharp!"

"You havent asked if I had work to do. What if I have something really important to do tomorrow? Darien said with a grin in his face.

"Yeah? Like what?"

"Dunno. Saving the world, maybe I am an undercover CIA agent, or a superhero!"

"You dont look like any of those. And the world will have to wait. Tomorrow is your day and I am gonna make sure you have the best birthday ever! See ya! Gotta do a lot of planning for tomorrow!"

Serena ran outside the door, thinking about what they should do. Meanwhile, Darien closed the door, smiling at the perspective of spending the whole afternoon with Serena. What a best birthday gift than that? Even if he havent admit it, he was starting to fall fo her.


	7. BDay unpleasant surprise

B-Day unpleasant surprise.

Darien sat in front of a table in the balcony of the penthouse. He was just letting the time pass, waiting it to be noon, so he and Serena could spend the afternoon together. He smiled, remembering about their talk last night. _I never thought I could find someone like her in this city,_ he thought as he sipped his coffee.

Behind him, Malachite stood, holding a newspaper. He was feeling bad, knowing that the news he was about to read would spoil all his day. Taking a deep breath, he approached his represented.

"Mally, I said I wanted to be alone, so if you are here, I guess there are important news. But, let me tell ya, nothing can spoil the happiness I am feeling."

"Well, sorry to break it to you, but you need to read this" He said, as he gave Darien the newspaper, opened in the gossip column.

Dariens eyes widened as he saw the headliner of the front page: BIG SCANDAL! POP SINGER, DARIEN GREEN FOUND WITH A MINOR!, with a picture of him and Serena on the restaurant, last night. The rest of the article said that Mister Green had a fight with the lady, a local school girl. The piece also said that Green ordered alcoholic beverages for the girl and for himself.

Malachite knew that Dariens first words after he read the new would be hard ones, but expecting them didnt make them less hard.

"What the hell this bastards think they are doing?! Putting me as a pervert?! She is gonna be 18 in two weeks! Besides, she didnt even drink!"

"I know, but you should have expected this, besides, is not as if you are that old, you are 22 years old. What are you gonna do?"

"Call my lawyer, and ask for a press conference. I am making these idiots swallow their pride and apologize to me and to her!"

Darien walked to his room and slammed the door. He was sulking against the idiotic so-called journalists. He sat down on his bed and took a few deep breaths. _I gotta call Serena, and warn her._ He took his cell phone and dialed her number. The phone rang three times, and she picked up.

"Hello? Serena?"

"Darien? is that you?"

"Yeah, its me. How are you doing?"

"In big trouble. I guess you are calling for the newspaper story. My dad freaked out and forbid me to see you again. He says that I am underage and said the most horrible things about you."

"I am calling for a press conference to tell the truth about everything. I am going to your place to talk to your parents."

"No, dont come! My parents are really upset."

"No Serena, I am going! We did nothing wrong and I am not letting you handle this alone."

"But…"

"No, I will be there soon. Bye"

"Bye"

Darien hung up his phone and dressed as fast as he could. He got outside the room, and Malachite was sitting on the couch. He stared at him, surprised to see him changed to go out.

"Where are you going?"

"To Serenas place. I just called her, and things are bad there, so I am going to fix things up."

"Darien, I hope you understand what you are doing and that she is worth it."

"You and I know that she is worth it. Wish me luck."

"Yeah, break a leg."

Darien rushed outside the penthouse and took the elevator down to the hotel parking lot. He got on his rented Hummer and drove outside. (AN: A Hummer? Yeah I know that is too cliché, but I really like those cars. Specially the ones used on CSI: Miami).

………………………&# 8230;…………

Serena was pacing around her bedroom. The whole idea of Darien coming to her house to face her parents didnt convinced her. She was worried of what this could mean to his career. The thought surprised her, so she stopped dead on her track. _Worried about HIS career? Since when do you care so much about the guy, Serena?_ (AN: Inner self arguing? We all do that, right? I dunno if you do it, but I definitely do it from time to time. Try it, its funny and interesting!). She sat on her bed and put her head on her hands. "God, what is wrong with me?"

"Nothing is wrong"

Serena lifted her head and saw her mother standing on the doorway, smiling at her.

"What are you doing here mom?"

"I was worried about you, thats all. And I wanted to ask you something dear."

"What?"

"Is it real what the newspapers are telling?"

"No mom! Darien would never do such a thing! He has been nothing but a perfect gentleman with me since day one. The one that acted like a jerk was me! I was planning a perfect day for him for his birthday, but it seems that I ended ruining it too!"

She nodded, looking at her daughter, smiling at all the memories that came to her mind. Funny, it reminded her the time her parents were upset because her boyfriend was older than her. Everything turned out fine and from that relationship she had her children. Her boyfriend was her husband today.

"Mom, are you ok?"

"Yeah honey, why are you asking that?"

"You were staring into nowhere and smiling. What were you thinking?"

"Have I ever told you how did your dad and I met?"

"No"

"I was on my first year of high school and I was playing volleyball. The ball I threw hit your father, a senior year, on the head. My parents were upset when we began dating, because he was a lot older than me. It reminds me of you and this Darien guy."

"Mom! Darien and I are just friends!"

Serenas mom got up from the bed she was sitting on. She walked out the door and turned to see her daughter.

"You say that now, but you never know what the future might bring to you."

Then they heard the sound of a car parking in front of the house. Serena run to the window and saw a black Hummer parked in front of her house and Darien getting out of it.

"Well, here we go" Serena told her mother.

"I am with you, remember that." Her mother said.

………………………&# 8230;…………………..

Darien got out the car and walked towards the front door of her house. He took a deep breath and knocked at the door. The door opened to reveal a very nervous Serena standing behind it.

"Hey" he said

"Hi, ready?"

"How scary is your dad?"

"You will be ok. Besides I told you that I could handle this by myself."

"You are in this mess because of me, the least I could do is get you out of it"

Before they could say something else, they heard Serenas dad from behind her.

"I suppose that you are Darien?"

"Yes sir. Nice to meet you"

Her dad just frowned and made a sign at Darien to follow him inside. They all four walked into the living room and sat on the couches. Darien and Serena sat together in one and her parents on the opposite.

"I guess that you already read todays newspaper."

"Yes, and thats why I came here."

"I dont want my daughter to be famous just because some famous singer wants to get his way with her."

"Dad!" Serena replied, looking very upset, "Darien is not like that, you should know that!"

"How can you be so sure? You dont even know the guy!"

"So let me get to know each other in a better way" Darien replied

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Your concern is that your daughter gets the wrong reputation. I already called for a press conference to clear this mess up. My lawyer submitted a complain against the journalist that wrote the story. I care about your daughter a lot, and let me tell ya that I dont want her to be known because of that mess, so I want to ask for your permission to visit your daughter. I am leaving to finish the tour in two days, but I am ending it in two weeks. After that, I have some free time. I want to spend as much time with her as I can."

"And what proof do I have that you are not gonna play with her? I still dont trust you"

"Honey! You are talking like my parents when we were dating!" Serenas mom said, "The poor guy had the guts to came all the way here to face you! I think thats all the proof you need"

He nodded to his wife and turned to face Darien.

"Ok. You can visit her, but I dont want her to be out of this house late. If you go out, she has to be here at 11, the least."

Darien nodded and got up to leave, Serena followed him outside the house. Her dad was about to follow them, but her mom took him by the hand and made him stay. The couple walked to the front of the house.

"You didnt have to say that" Serena broke the silence. Darien turned around to face her.

"What do you mean?"

"The whole idea of visiting me. I know you did it to chill my dad and I appreciate it, but you didnt have to"

"Why not? I want to keep on seeing you."

Serena blushed and looked down, but Darien hold her by the chin and made her face him.

"What do you want from me Darien?"

"I just want to be close to you. You have no idea how much I enjoy being around you."

"Too bad that I ruined your birthday. I really wanted to make it special."

"There is something that you could do to make it special"

She smiled and looked at him, amused.

"And what is that?"

"This"

He leaned closer to her and kissed her. Serena was really surprised at first, but then she kissed him back. They held each other very close, until Serena broke the kiss.

"Wow!"

"What?"

"Thats your idea of a birthday present?" Serena said

"Yours? Yes"

"But… Why?"

"You mean to me more than you could possibly imagine Serena. I realize that the moment you walked into my life. I love you Serena, dont you ever forget that"

Darien got into the car and drove away. Serena stood there until he disappeared from her sight.

"Yeah Darien. I love you too."

………………………&# 8230;………………………… ………


End file.
